8 February 2015 - ENCS

The family series was continued by Pastor Josh and his wife

Nani and Josh spoke on "Parenthood", rather central to life

 

Nani said moving from single to married to parent, issues grow

But God uses these to make us better, she has come to know

As God's children, into the world we should want to bring others

An open heart for God's plan should have all fathers and mothers

But remember that from parents' action children take their cue

And that children tend to build upon what their parents do

 

Josh read from Deuteronomy chapter six, verses one to three

God teaches parents, who teach future generations, we did see

By sharing with children, parents can impart knowledge and lore

Our Lord God can build on this by imparting knowledge even more

Josh opined that fathering is increasingly in today's world a lost art

With healthy marriages and parenting, many issues would not start

The next six verses of Deuteronomy six then came into sight

We should love our God with all of our heart, soul, and might

In that vein, with diligence parents should their children teach

And if they love God so much, into all areas of life He will reach

As parents change and consistently show that love is key

Then their children will notice and begin to act accordingly

 

Josh then talked about discipline, using a couple of equations

For some discipline and rules are necessary on most occasions

Rules without a relationship lead to rebellion, Josh did say

Which then leads to extreme behavior on too many a day

And yet a relationship without rules leads to recklessness

If parents do not provide guidance, children end up a mess

But the same approach does not work with Christians young

We need to encourage them without rules or a sharp tongue

Josh referred to Hebrews chapter twelve from verse five

The Lord's discipline actually helps us in the end to thrive

He only disciplines those whom He accepts as a son

Per Proverbs three this discipline we should not shun

We should respect disciplining fathers, Hebrews continues

Ditto for God, whose discipline into our hearts does infuse

The third equation Josh shared -  with a bit of zing

Was that relationship plus rules equals understanding

Children will ask for advice if relationships are in place

Josh then said that for discipleship, this is also the case

 

But even the best parenting can lead to bad results

Per Luke fifteen, the prodigal son who said insults

But just as lost sheep need a shepherd to find them

Strong foundations help the prodigal, not condemn

His father felt compassion when the son did return

For the foundations had helped the son to discern